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How Small Businesses Can Build Brand Religion

Low prices and stellar customer service go a long way to keep companies of any size in business. To help small businesses grow, however, they need devoted fans to spread the gospel of their products and services. The best way to create a loyal customer following is to build brand religion, said Ron Faris, former head of Brand Marketing for Virgin Mobile USA.

Get Emotional

As Malcolm Gladwell wrote in his book, The Tipping Point, religions are spread by the emotional zeal of their followers. Brand fanatics behave in a similar way, Faris said. “When a fanatic becomes emotional, he or she is more apt to pay more, wait longer and share louder.”

Small businesses can cultivate fanatical followers by making emotional connections with their communities. The best marketing campaigns are interactive and help business owners create relationships that make customers feel like they’re part of your “tribe,” noted Eric Holtzclaw, author of, Laddering: Unlocking the Potential of Consumer Behavior.

Whether it’s in-person or online, companies should find ways for their tribe to congregate and share their zeal. “The more communal moments that brand fanatics can share with one another, the more brand religion can grow,” advised Faris. Brand religion is a great way for small businesses to be competitive against larger companies, he added, because it leverages the power of communities to evangelize their products.

One way to get fans together is to reward them with exclusive or limited-edition products, flash sales or unique experiences they can’t find elsewhere. “Sometimes, the experience of anticipation can be just as powerful as the product you’re selling,” Faris said.

By giving fans the incentive to line up for scarce products, a company also creates a micro-community of its most devoted followers. “Ultimately, this is what brand religion is all about: stoking emotion with a combination of scarcity and urgency. It’s irrational commerce at its finest,” Faris said.

Create a Dogma

Oftentimes, a company sharing its beliefs—and reinforcing its dogma in the way it runs its business—can help create strong loyalty among followers who can become influencers in its community.

Eyewear company Warby Parker, for example, created a cult-like brand by creating a set of commandments that guides all of its business practices. Tech giant AppleApple is known for the ease of use of its products. And online shoe retailer Zappos is renowned for its over-the-top customer service. Creating a dogma not only teaches customers about a company’s products and services, but also helps them become brand evangelists who can spread the word to others.

“Like musicians and sports teams before them, brands doing it right regard their community members more as fans rather than customers,” Faris noted. Building relationships with fans, creating communities and sharing their dogma are ways smart companies can convert those fans into loyal followers who will share the gospel of their brand.

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